Childhood Lost

Children today are noticeably different from previous generations, and the proof is in the news coverage we see every day. This site shows you what’s happening in schools around the world. Children are increasingly disabled and chronically ill, and the education system has to accommodate them. Things we've long associated with autism, like sensory issues, repetitive behaviors, anxiety and lack of social skills, are now problems affecting mainstream students. Blame is predictably placed on bad parenting (otherwise known as trauma from home).

Addressing mental health needs is as important as academics for modern educators. This is an unrecognized disaster. The stories here are about children who can’t learn or behave like children have always been expected to. What childhood has become is a chilling portent for the future of mankind.

Anne Dachel, Media editor, Age of Autism

(John Dachel, Tech. assist.)

"What will happen in another 4 years? How can we go on like this? This is a national (and international) problem of monumental proportions. We have an entire new class of children who cannot be accommodated by the system: many are manifestly neurologically impaired. Meanwhile, the government and the medical profession sleep on regardless."

John Stone,

UK media editor, Age of Autism

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"The generation of American children born after 1990 are arguably the sickest generation in the history of our country."

Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.

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July 18, 2019, BBC News: Special needs 'breaking county council budgets' https://www.bbc.com/news/education-49033015The explosion in demand for special educational needs (SEN) support is threatening English county councils' ability to meet their legal duties.
The number of support plans they have to meet by law has risen by a half since 2014, the county councils say.
The 27 that responded to a County Councils Network survey of the 36 English councils overspent their 2018-19 SEN budgets by a total of £123m.
The government says its investment into these budgets is significant.
'Spiralling costs'
Since 2014, councils have had to support 19- to 25-year-olds with special educational needs, as well as those of school age.
And this is one of the reasons for a 48% rise in the number of plans setting out the care and support to which young people are legally entitled.
Councillor Carl Les said the 2014 changes had caused costs to spiral out of control.
"As this huge increase in demand is unfunded, the cost burden has come from other service areas," he said.
"Counties already face a funding gap of £21.5bn [$28B U.S.] over the next five years - and if we continue to overspend at the level we have done, it will break many of our budgets…
"It is clear that the current system is not working effectively when nearly two-thirds of councils nationwide over the past year are not reaching the expected level of service in their special educational needs departments."